So I got this system message .....

....... "Hello TheNoob it appears that you have not posted on our forums in several weeks, why not take a few moments to ask a question, help provide a solution or just engage in a conversation with another member in any one of our forums?"


So, ok, my question is this:

Why, oh why, in my first casino tourny last Sunday, did God let that guy hit a straight on the river after he called down my QQ with 56o?

I honestly don't remember the hand exactly (see below), but I think his shove was on the turn.

So early in the tourny, I honestly think I should have considered folding just a big pair to his shove. But I called, he hit the straight and it's time to drive back home. (except I was tilting, so I figured I would hit two blackjacks in a row starting with a $100 bet and letting it ride ..... so I did )

I was still mildly upset.


But let me tell you my real problem with live poker, and why I just can't tell you the specifics of the hand. First let me say no, I am not on any medication or drugs and have never been diagnosed with a mental problem. Not yet, anyway.

The reason I can't relay the whole hand to you is that I just don't remember. During live play I get this nervousness that, in part, virtually blinds me to what is going on. ESPECIALLY when I have a big hand.

It's some kind of performance anxiety and attention defecit all rolled up into something that is the death of a poker player.

Playing online is SO much different, and this issue was literally a shock to me. Getting confused, not being able to make a correct decision, looking but not really SEEING the board and even having problems performing simple addition to call a raise, let alone figuring outs and pot odds.

As you probably know, I'm generally a new player and really only have less than a year experience, all online except for some charity games. But my game has improved significantly and I haven't made a deposit in months. My cash game account has 4 winning months in a row, but it's all micro.

The answer Obi Wan? I suppose like everything else ...... practice.

I started a 'Live Play Log', and I have two pages of notes and details of mistakes (one big hand I started reaching for chips when the guy 2 PLAYERS before me raised! DUMB!!). Prominent are notes to 'calm down' and 'focus', but I really don't know how I am going to accomplish this.

Whatever. I will be back on Sunday to try and improve.

If I have explained my problem well enough, any thoughts or advice will be greatly appreciated.

As always, onward.

I think you've pretty much highlighted a common surprise for people which is both worlds are really different, although you went the opposite direction than I did (I went live to online). But it looks like you're on the right track with the note-taking. This is going to sound dumb but maybe imagine the other people as squares with text screennames and numbers beneath them? XD!!! I'm only half-joking too.

Oh, man, I thought you were going to say imagine them naked.

Might work heads up with Evelyn Ng, though .......

I'll tell you what, I'll take any suggestion I can get.

It goes without saying that there is some kind of apprehension that is based in the fact that I'm trying to perform at a table full of people, as opposed to online where you are literally sitting there by yourself.

I usually order a double of Scotch straight-up at the start of a tournament. It helps me to relax just a bit and focus better. The only problem was when I had a cocktail gal that insisted on continuing to bring me refills.... by the FT i felt like I was Scotty Nugyen!

Yes live play is a heck of a lot different and changing over is a big ajustment. Im one of the ones who has made the opposite change from live to online (yeah one of them) Once you get used to it and if you have an eye for it live play is a lot easier in some ways . Players give off a lot more clues to what they have. and are it is sometimes easier to intimidate them if you give off the right body language etc . vica versa people can do the same to you. A lot of people have trouble reading the board if "online " only players. Just remember you have a lot more time to think about things ...you will not be auto folded after 15 seconds .... stand up if you have to and look at the board from a more direct angle it may resemble your screen a little more And yes Luke practice use the force
good luck next week

so tell us how you really feel
no holding back this time

I remember a few years ago I was right near the money on an afternoon Ceasars Palace MTT and a really aggressive stack raised from UTG. It was my first live casino tournament. He had been attacking my blinds for the last few rounds and when it was my turn I looked down at AQ... my ultimate nemesis hand heh.

So I went over the top of him for all of my chips. I know exactly what you're talking about. I had been all in earlier, but I was calling preflop with bullets. This time was different. And all this anxiety was going crazy in my head.

I remember him saying "I hope this is a coinflip" as he flipped over AK.

I sat at the table while the cards were dealt. But I didnt see any of them. To this day I have to wonder if a Queen hit the board or I made a flush or it was a split. Because I just stood up and started walking away... completely stunned, completely confused.

Its gotten a lot better since that first tournament. A lot of the hands I found myself having a hard time figuring out if I had the odds to chase a flush on the flop or a straight on the river... just because I was stressing myself out so badly.

The couple of times I bluffed I was absolutely positive everybody knew I was bluffing... even when it worked.

The more you play live, the easier it will get. I try to keep my mind busy watching everyone else now. I took advice from Caro's book. If I notice myself doing something when I have a good hand (Say shuffling my chips or chewing gum faster) I'll make sure I do it conciously when I have a bad hand also. Funny, I started chewing gum to give myself something to do... then I realized I was chewing it faster when I got good hands. lol.

Its still a challenge to me to concentrate live... but it has gotten easier.